An electricity substation in Meyerton south of Johannesburg “blew up” on Friday‚ affecting supply to a major industrial company.
Eskom said a 20MVA transformer exploded when it was switched back after maintenance.
“The station has since been shut down.
“Within minutes of the incident‚ the Emergency Preparedness Centre was activated‚ the incident scene contained and the rescue teams deployed.
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“Supply cannot be restored until the fire is extinguished by the Fire Department‚ who is currently on site. The extent of the damage to other equipment in the substation yard cannot be accurately determined until the fire has been extinguished. Eskom operators are on site to evaluate the extent of damage and to restore supply to the customer.”
The substation supplies the industrial customer‚ Samancor‚ a silicone manganese producing company.
Eskom said a fact-finding and information gathering process is under way at the Amcor substation.
It added‚ “Amcor substation has an excellent safety track record and is well recognised for its safety standards and procedures. There are seven transformers at the substation. The customer has reduced load at the station in the past due to economic factors. Accordingly‚ the current load can be handled by the existing transformers if no damage has been sustained to any of them during the explosion“.
Fire department called out as Eskom sub-station explodes
An electricity substation in Meyerton south of Johannesburg “blew up” on Friday‚ affecting supply to a major industrial company.
Eskom said a 20MVA transformer exploded when it was switched back after maintenance.
“The station has since been shut down.
“Within minutes of the incident‚ the Emergency Preparedness Centre was activated‚ the incident scene contained and the rescue teams deployed.
Also read: Eskom trains 100 students to ‘develop a robust nuclear operator pipeline’
“Supply cannot be restored until the fire is extinguished by the Fire Department‚ who is currently on site. The extent of the damage to other equipment in the substation yard cannot be accurately determined until the fire has been extinguished. Eskom operators are on site to evaluate the extent of damage and to restore supply to the customer.”
The substation supplies the industrial customer‚ Samancor‚ a silicone manganese producing company.
Eskom said a fact-finding and information gathering process is under way at the Amcor substation.
It added‚ “Amcor substation has an excellent safety track record and is well recognised for its safety standards and procedures. There are seven transformers at the substation. The customer has reduced load at the station in the past due to economic factors. Accordingly‚ the current load can be handled by the existing transformers if no damage has been sustained to any of them during the explosion“.
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